Windscreen wiper device

ABSTRACT

A windscreen wiper device for cleaning a windshield of a vehicle is provided. The windscreen wiper device includes a wiper strip for sealing against the windshield and at least one carrier element engaged with the wiper strip to bias the wiper strip into a predetermined configuration. A frame structure is coupled to the at least one carrier element and includes at least two components. One of the components presents an elongated member with a resilient tab, and another component includes a longitudinally extending opening. One of the walls of the opening has a recess shaped similarly to the resilient tab. The elongated member is inserted into the opening until the resilient tab snaps into the opening to interconnect the components.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of application Ser. No. 61/570,563,filed Dec. 14, 2011, the entire contents of which is hereby incorporatedby reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention is related generally to windscreen wiper devicesfor automobiles and more particularly to hybrid windscreen wiperdevices.

2. Related Art

The majority of automotive windscreen wiper devices, or wiper blades,can be categorized as either conventional-style wiper blades(hereinafter referred to as “conventional blades”) or beam-style wiperblades (hereinafter referred to as “beam blades”). Conventional bladestypically include an elongated wiper strip; at least one carrier element(also known as a flexor); and a frame structure with a connecting devicefor attachment to a wiper arm, a plurality of linkages and a pluralityof claws. The carrier elements are generally linearly shaped when in arelaxed state, and the frame structure distributes a force from a wiperarm across the lengths of the carrier elements and the wiper strip whileallowing the carrier elements and wiper strip to flex and conform to thecurvature of a vehicle's windshield. This establishes a seal between thewiper strip and the windshield. The various components of the framestructure are typically connected to one another with a plurality ofpins which are inserted through aligned holes in the differentcomponents and then deformed to establish permanent pivotingrelationships between the different components.

Beam blades, in contrast to conventional blades, lack a frame structure.Instead, the carrier elements of beam blades are curved when in arelaxed state, and the connecting device is attached directly to thecarrier element or elements. When a beam blade is pressed against awindshield, the curved carrier elements conform the wiper strip to thecurvature of the windshield and press substantially the entire length ofthe wiper strip against the windshield to establish the seal between thewiper strip and the windshield. Beam blades also typically include oneor more spoiler elements, which use a flow of air over the beam blade toapply a down force on the carrier elements and the wiper strip while thevehicle is in motion to further press the wiper.

Some wiper blade manufacturers have begun producing and marketing“hybrid blades” which include certain features from both conventionaland beam blades. Such hybrid blades typically include a frame structureand a spoiler-shaped cover piece that is disposed over the framestructure. This gives the otherwise conventional blade the down forceeffect of beam blades. As with conventional blades, the frame structuresof typical hybrid blades include multiple pieces that are pivotablycoupled to one another with a plurality of deformed pins. However, theprocesses currently employed to couple these pieces to one another insuch a way that they will not come apart during operation of theautomobile may be time consuming and/or costly.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present invention, a windscreen wiperdevice for cleaning a windshield of a vehicle. The windscreen wiperdevice includes an elongated wiper strip of a flexible material forsealing against the windshield and at least one deflectable carrierelement in engagement the wiper strip for biasing the wiper strip into apredetermined configuration. A frame structure is coupled to the atleast one carrier element and includes at least two components. One ofthe components presents an elongated member and another componentpresents an opening shaped to receive the elongated member. Either theelongated member or a wall of the opening presents a resilient tab andthe other presents a recess shaped to receive the resilient tab. Theelongated member is disposed in the opening with the resilient tab beingreceived within the recess to interconnect the pieces. This connectionis very strong and interconnects the components in such a manner thatthey will not come disengaged from one another during operation of thevehicle. Additionally, the connection may be made manually orautomatically by simply pushing the elongated member until the resilienttab snaps into engagement with the recess. This snapping provides anaudible notification that a proper connection between the two componentshas been established.

According to another aspect of the invention, the at least twocomponents includes a main bridge and a pair of end piecesub-assemblies. The main bridge includes a pair of the openings, and onewall in each opening presents the recess. Each end piece sub-assemblyincludes an elongated member in the form of a connecting piece which isalso coupled to an end cap and a linkage with claws in engagement withthe carrier elements. Each connecting piece includes a resilient tabreceived within one of the recess in the main bridge.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, the recess is spacedfrom the end of the main bridge such that the resilient tab is notaccessible from outside of the main bridge. As such, the connectionbetween the end piece sub-assembly and the main bridge is, for allpractical purposes, irreversible and permanent. This further ensuresthat these components do not become detached from one another.

Another aspect of the present invention is a method of making awindscreen wiper device. The method includes the step of engaging atleast one carrier element with a wiper strip to bias the wiper stripinto a predetermined configuration. The method continues with the stepof preparing a frame structure including at least two components withone of the components having an elongated member and the other having anopening shaped to receive the elongated member. Either the elongatedmember or a wall of the opening includes a resilient tab and the otherincludes a recess shaped similarly to the resilient tab. The methodproceeds with the step of engaging at least one of the components withthe at least one carrier element. The method then continues with thestep of inserting the elongated member of one component into the openingof the other component until the resilient tab snaps into engagementwith the recess to interconnect the components. This process may beaccomplished very quickly and at low cost.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features and advantages of the present invention will bereadily appreciated, as the same becomes better understood by referenceto the following detailed description when considered in connection withthe accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective and elevation view of an exemplary wiper bladeassembly;

FIG. 2 is a partially exploded view of a frame structure of the wiperblade assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of an end piece sub-assembly of the wiperblade assembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the end piece sub-assembly ofFIG. 3 and showing an end cap pivotally connected to a connecting piece;

FIG. 5 is a perspective and elevation view of the end piece sub-assemblyof FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an exemplary connecting piece takenalong line 6-6 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary view of a main bridge from the wiper bladeassembly of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of the main bridge taken along line 8-8of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view showing a resilient tab on a connectingpiece received within a recess in the main bridge; and

FIG. 10 is a perspective and elevation view of a pair of carrierelements from the wiper blade assembly of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ENABLING EMBODIMENT

Referring to the Figures, wherein like numerals indicate correspondingparts throughout the several views, an exemplary embodiment of a hybridwindscreen wiper device, or a hybrid wiper blade assembly 20, isgenerally shown in FIG. 1. The exemplary wiper blade assembly 20includes a wiper strip 22 of a flexible and resilient material, such asrubber, for sealing against a vehicle's windshield (not shown) and fordriving rain, snow, ice or other elements away therefrom. The exemplarywiper strip 22 extends in a longitudinal direction and includes a pairof oppositely facing grooves that extend substantially the entirelongitudinal length of the wiper strip 22. Carrier elements 24 (alsoknown as flexors) are disposed in the grooves to bias the wiper strip 22into a predetermined configuration. The carrier elements 24 are formedfrom thin strips of a flexible and spring-like material, such as springsteel, and extend in the longitudinal direction between opposite carrierends. Preferably, the carrier elements 24 are slidably disposed in thegrooves and are not locked into engagement with the wiper strip 22. Thisconfiguration has the effect of relieving internal stresses within thewiper strip 22 when it is bent to conform to the curvature of awindshield thereby improving the wipe quality and durability of thewiper blade assembly 20. Alternately, the carrier elements 24 may belocked into engagement with the wiper strip 22 in one location withoutsubstantially increasing internal stresses within the wiper strip 22.

The wiper blade assembly 20 also includes a frame structure 26 which iscoupled to the carrier elements 24 and distributes a force from a wiperarm (not shown) across a portion of the wiper strip 22 to seal thatportion of the wiper strip 22 against the windshield. As best shown inthe partially exploded view of FIG. 2, the exemplary frame structure 26includes a main bridge 28 and a pair of end piece sub-assemblies 30configured for attachment with opposite ends of the main bridge 28. Aconnecting device 32 is disposed in a generally central location of themain bridge 28 and is configured for attachment to an end of the wiperarm. The exemplary connecting device 32 is configured for attachment toa hook-style wiper arm. However, it should be appreciated that theconnecting device 32 could be of a range of different designs forattaching with other types of wiper arms including, for example,pin-style wiper arms or bayonet-style wiper arms.

Referring now to FIG. 3, an exploded view of one of the end piecesub-assemblies 30 is generally shown. Each end piece sub-assembly 30includes a linkage 34, a connecting piece 36 and an end cap 38 (or endcover). As shown in FIG. 6, the exemplary connecting piece 36 isgenerally U-shaped as viewed in cross-section and has an upper wall 40and a pair of side walls 42. Referring back to FIG. 3, the side walls 42include two sets of apertures 44 spaced from one another.

One end of the end cap 38 presents a downwardly extending flange portion46 and a pair of generally L-shaped holding elements 48 for wrappingpartially around the carrier elements 24 (shown in FIG. 1) to supportthe carrier elements 24 without restricting movement of the carrierelements 24 relative to the end cap 38 or the rest of the framestructure 26 in the longitudinal direction, i.e. the holding elements 48are not clamped, staked or otherwise fixed onto the carrier elements 24.An outwardly extending tongue 50 with a pair of oppositely facing posts52 is disposed on the end of the end cap 38 opposite of the downwardlyextending flange portion 46. As shown in FIG. 4, the posts 52 on thetongue 50 are inserted into one of the sets of apertures 44 on theconnecting piece 36 to establish a pivoting relationship between the endcap 38 and the connecting piece 36. The open bottom of the connectingpiece 36 allows the end cap 38 to pivot downwardly, and the upper wall40 of the connecting piece 36 serves as a stopping point to restrictpivoting of the end cap 38 upwardly past a certain point.

The linkage 34 of each end piece sub-assembly 30 includes two sets ofclaws 54 spaced apart from one another. The sets of claws 54 areinterconnected with one another through a V-shaped bridge 56 which has apair of oppositely facing posts 53 disposed at its apex. As shown inFIG. 5, the posts 53 are inserted into one of the sets of apertures 44in the connecting piece 36 to establish a pivoting relationship betweenthe linkage 34 and the connecting piece 36. The open bottom of theU-shaped connecting piece 36 allows the linkage 34 to pivot in twodirections. Similar to the holding elements 48 on the end caps 38, theclaws 54 are in sliding (i.e. non-fixed) engagement with the exemplarycarrier elements 24, thereby biasing the wiper strip 22 against thewindshield while also allowing the carrier elements 24 and the wiperstrip 22 to slide in the longitudinal direction relative to the linkages34. This feature improves the wipe quality and durability of the wiperblade assembly 20 by reducing the internal stresses within the carrierelements 24 and the wiper strip 22 when they are bent to conform to thecurvature of the windshield.

Referring still to FIG. 5, the upper wall 40 of the connecting piece 36has a spring loaded and resilient tab 58 (or a bayonet) which is locatedlengthwise between the sets of apertures 44. The resilient tab 58 isonly connected to the surrounding portions of the connecting piece 36 onone side so that the resilient tab 58 is at the end of a cantilever beamlike portion of the connecting piece 36. The connecting piece 36 isformed of a polymeric material (or any other resilient and deflectablematerial), and the cantilever beam like portion provides the springforce to bias the resilient tab 58 into a predetermined position with itextending upwardly from an upper surface of the linkage 34.

Referring now to FIG. 7, each end of the main bridge 28 includes agenerally square or rectangularly shaped opening extending in in thelongitudinal direction. The bottom of the opening presents a pair ofinwardly extending flanges 60 with an open slot being disposed betweenthe flanges 60. As shown in FIG. 8, the top of the opening includes arecess 62 that is shaped similarly to the resilient flange 60 on theconnecting device 32 and is spaced from an end of the main bridge 28. Toconnect an end piece sub-assembly 30 with the main bridge 28, theconnecting piece 36 of the end piece sub-assembly 30 is inserted intothe opening of the main bridge 28 until the resilient tab 58 snaps intoengagement with the similarly-shaped recess 62 in the opening. Thisconnection between the resilient tab 58 and the recess 62 in the openingis shown in FIG. 9 and is hereinafter referred to as a “bayonetconnection”. Because the resilient tab 58 is not readily accessible fromoutside of the main bridge 28, the bayonet connection between the mainbridge 28 and the end piece sub-assembly 30 is, for all practicalpurposes, irreversible and permanent. This is important because, whilethe bayonet connection between the end piece sub-assembly 30 and themain bridge 28 may be quickly established, it is also strong andresistant to failure. Accordingly, in addition to the cost savingsprovided by the bayonet connection, there is little to no risk of theend piece subassemblies 30 becoming detached from the main bridge 28during operation of the vehicle. An end of the connecting piece 36 isinclined to guide the connecting piece 36 into the opening of the mainbridge, thereby allowing the bayonet connection to be more easily made.

The open slot between the flanges 60 on the main bridge 28 is thinnerthan the width of the connecting piece 36 to retain the connecting piece36 within the opening but wider than the width of the linkages 34 toallow the linkages 34 to extend downwardly through the slot and to pivotrelative to the main bridge 28.

Referring now to FIG. 10, each of the exemplary carrier elements 24 ispre-shaped to be generally M-shaped with a pair of downwardly facingcurves spaced from one another by an upwardly facing curve when it is ina relaxed, unstressed state before it is inserted into a groove in thewiper strip 22. This may have the effect of more uniformly pressing thewiper strip 22 against a curved windshield. However, it should beappreciated that the carrier elements 24 may be generally linearlyshaped or they could have any desirable curvature or combination ofcurvatures when in the relaxed state.

Referring back to FIG. 1, the exterior surfaces of the end caps 38 andthe main bridge 28 are generally spoiler shaped. This creates a downforce to further bias the wiper strip 22 against the windshield andimprove the seal established therebetween when the vehicle is travellingat speeds. In the exemplary embodiment, this aerodynamic down force isthe only biasing force applied onto the carrier elements 24 and thewiper strip 22 by the end caps 38 which are freely pivotable relative tothe main bridge 28.

Another aspect of the present invention is a method of making awindscreen wiper device. The method includes the step of engaging atleast one carrier element 24 with a wiper strip 22 to bias the wiperstrip 22 into a predetermined configuration. The method continues withthe step of preparing a frame structure 26 having at least twocomponents with one of the components having an elongated member and theother component having an opening shaped to receive the elongatedmember. For example, in the exemplary embodiment, the elongated memberis the connecting piece 36 of the end piece sub-assembly 30, and thecomponent with the opening is the main bridge 28. The connecting piece36 includes a resilient tab 58 and the main bridge 28 presents a recess62 that is shaped similarly to the resilient tab 58 and is disposedwithin the opening. However, it should be appreciated that the resilienttab 58 could alternately be on the main bridge 28 and the recess 62could be on the connecting piece 36. The method continues with the stepof engaging at least one of the components with the at least one carrierelement 24. The engaging process could be, for example, sliding a claw54 on the end piece sub-assembly 30 over the at least one carrierelement 24. The method then proceeds with the step of inserting theconnecting piece 36 into the opening of the main bridge 28 until theresilient tab 58 snaps into engagement with the recess 62 tointerconnect the end piece sub-assembly 30 with the main bridge 28. Thismethod allows for a very simple and low cost construction of thewindscreen wiper device while also ensuring a strong and, for allpractical purposes, permanent connection between the main bridge 28 andthe end piece sub-assembly 30.

Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present inventionare possible in light of the above teachings and may be practicedotherwise than as specifically described while within the scope of theappended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A windscreen wiper device for cleaning awindshield of a vehicle, comprising: an elongated wiper strip of aflexible material for sealing against the windshield; at least onedeflectable carrier element in engagement with said elongated wiperstrip for biasing said elongated wiper strip into a pre-curvedconfiguration; a frame structure coupled to said at least one carrierelement; said frame structure including a main bridge with aspoiler-shaped outer surface and a pair of end piece sub-assemblies thatare coupled to opposite ends of said main bridge; each of said end piecesub-assemblies including a linkage with two sets of claws that arespaced from one another and an end cap and a connecting piece which ispivotably connected with said linkage and with said end cap and whichpresents a resiliently deflectable tongue with a button that projects ina direction away from said wiper strip; each of said opposite ends ofsaid main bridge having an opening shaped to receive said connectingpiece of one of said end piece sub-assemblies and a recess within saidopening; said connecting pieces of said end piece sub-assemblies beingat least partially received within said openings of said main bridgewith said buttons being disposed within said recesses such that saidconnecting pieces are restricted from rotation relative to said mainbridge; and said recesses being covered by said spoiler-shaped outersurface of said main bridge such that the connections between said endpiece sub-assemblies and said main bridge are irreversible andpermanent.
 2. The windscreen wiper device as set forth in claim 1wherein each recess is spaced from said ends of said main bridge.
 3. Thewindscreen wiper device as set forth in claim 1 wherein said opening onsaid main bridge includes a slot and wherein said linkage extendsdownwardly through said slot towards said at least one carrier element.